We Dance Around These Sleepy Rhymes

Marnie Stern “Put All Your Eggs In One Basket And Then Watch That Basket!!!” – It sounds like a band tumbling down a flight of stairs or a girly punk band fighting a wind storm, but lately, this is the song I put on when I want to feel calm. It’s like being in the eye of a hurricane, maybe. Stern’s arrangements are like meticulously crafted chaos — it spins around you, pulls you in every direction, but even when it feels like disorienting madness, there’s comfort and safety in the knowledge that every moment is organized and under control. (Click here to buy it from Kill Rock Stars.)

These Are Powers “Little Sisters Of Beijing” – The singing is passionate and intense, but it’s nearly overpowered by an incessant grayish electronic tone that sounds less like a proper instrument and more like the ambient hum of office machines and fluorescent lights. She sounds desperate and trapped, but also powerless and overwhelmed. The thing is, her voice is the one thing keeping that grim, oppressive tone from feeling like a source of strange comfort. (Click here for the These Are Powers MySpace page.)

Elsewhere: People playing chess on rollercoasters.